If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Re: How To Stay Malware/Virus Free!

ya backing up my drive is why i didn't dl windows 7, i have to much crap on here to save to my flash drive and other computer (mainly because >.> they're to small if i had a external hard drive i could)

Re: How To Stay Malware/Virus Free!

Originally Posted by killerwombat

What do you think about Spysweeper? If it isnt good, can you recommend a good free av program? Also, how would I go about backing up everything on my harddrive? I am planing to switch my OS to the new windows 7 candidate during my soon-to-be summerbreak, and it says that I need to do that.

I think its crap. From my experiences people with spysweeper get infected easily and it doesn't even pick anything up in scans.

If you look at the list of AV programs above, they are in general order of how good they are. So I recommend Avira as my #1. and then so on down the list.

Well the backing up process is a difficult thing. The easiest way would be to go buy an external hard drive big enough to hold everything that you have on your current hard drive. Then you have to go through your files and copy and paste over the important folders. Some I recommend keeping would be these. Note if your using Vista Replace "Documents and Settings" with "Users"

C:\Documents and Settings\*Your Username*\

C:\Documents and Settings\*Any other usernames*\

Shared Documents <--if you have a network set up

Also you would want to backup things like your bookmarks in your web browser, Settings for other programs and things like that. Note you can copy over C:\Program Files\ but its better to reinstall the programs once you have windows 7 installed. Just make sure you get those settings if you can.

Once you've done that and your are 100% sure you've copied everything you want to keep to the External hard drive, unplug it and use your windows 7 disc to boot up into the windows 7 install menu.

Go through normally and when you get to the select install location part, use the built in hard disk manager to format the partition which your previous OS was on. THIS WILL WIPE EVERYTHING OFF THE DRIVE, so only do this once your sure you have everything. Now just continue with the installation. :P

If you aren't able to get an external hard drive then there are other methods, but they are more complicated, and or, wasteful. For example using partitions or DVDs.

And if your unsure about the whole backup and format thing, I recommend not doing it. Or researching it a lot before doing it.

We could all stand to improve ourselves in order to live a more harmonious existence. To have the open mindedness of someone who is illogical, but to be logical enough to understand the world around you is something we would all benefit from.

Re: How To Stay Malware/Virus Free!

Originally Posted by killerwombat

Dont worry, I am 100% sure of this. I am pretty good with a computer, so I think that I will be fine.

Ok Cool.

We could all stand to improve ourselves in order to live a more harmonious existence. To have the open mindedness of someone who is illogical, but to be logical enough to understand the world around you is something we would all benefit from.

Re: How To Stay Malware/Virus Free!

It helps to know all your exe files. You need to know what programs are running in your background. Hit control+alt+delete and bring up the processes. Write down all the exe programs you aren't familiar with. Make sure you do this when nothing is running. Now go to google or yahoo and type in the name of these exe files. Stuff like SCVhost.exe is common. The internet can tell you what each exe does. If you have something unwelcome you can not only take action, but know what you shouldn't delete. In most cases you can tell stuff like Quicktime not to start up when you reboot windows. Unless you are using it, you don't need it on! It will just sap your RAM.

Start Menu-> Run-> msconfig-> ok-> Start Up-> Everything should be off. You may see certain programs like Firewalls, Printers/Scanners, 3d card. Turn it all off, and certain stuff may come back up by default. That's ok. But mostly it should never turn back on. If a program keeps turning on, and it's not part of what I just mentioned, it's probably a virus. Whenever unsure just look it by by exe name on search engines. Make sure when searching for information that the websites are legit. You don't want to get the actual virus when looking one up. This is a problem all governments of the world need to address. If ignored we could one day have AI go crazy, wipe out bank accounts, hospital records, and cause mass black outs. For now humans cause viruses. But one day AI will. I dread that day.

Re: How To Stay Malware/Virus Free!

Originally Posted by sagema

It helps to know all your exe files. You need to know what programs are running in your background. Hit control+alt+delete and bring up the processes. Write down all the exe programs you aren't familiar with. Make sure you do this when nothing is running. Now go to google or yahoo and type in the name of these exe files. Stuff like SCVhost.exe is common. The internet can tell you what each exe does. If you have something unwelcome you can not only take action, but know what you shouldn't delete. In most cases you can tell stuff like Quicktime not to start up when you reboot windows. Unless you are using it, you don't need it on! It will just sap your RAM.

Start Menu-> Run-> msconfig-> ok-> Start Up-> Everything should be off. You may see certain programs like Firewalls, Printers/Scanners, 3d card. Turn it all off, and certain stuff may come back up by default. That's ok. But mostly it should never turn back on. If a program keeps turning on, and it's not part of what I just mentioned, it's probably a virus. Whenever unsure just look it by by exe name on search engines. Make sure when searching for information that the websites are legit. You don't want to get the actual virus when looking one up. This is a problem all governments of the world need to address. If ignored we could one day have AI go crazy, wipe out bank accounts, hospital records, and cause mass black outs. For now humans cause viruses. But one day AI will. I dread that day.

Could you please refrain from posting advice that is potentially harmful to people. Do not go searching for your exe files. Many times Google will lead you to a legit site that says its is malware because malware often takes the same file name as other legit programs.

All please do not disable everything from the msconfig panel. If you aren't infected and you turn off your Anti-Virus at start up, chances are you will get infected. You can disable things from starting up, but only do so for things like messengers, updates, and other non essential things.

And no it isn't a problem that anybody needs to address. I haven't gotten any dangerous malware in 2 years and I'm sure any AI would have 10 times the Anti-Malware protection I do. It is actually very very very difficult to get malware from googling its name. I've tried. So don't worry about this.

Thanks for trying to help, but make sure what your saying is true first please.

We could all stand to improve ourselves in order to live a more harmonious existence. To have the open mindedness of someone who is illogical, but to be logical enough to understand the world around you is something we would all benefit from.

Re: How To Stay Malware/Virus Free!

Disabling programs at that area shouldn't harm your computer at all. I have done this process with every computer I owned. Windows 98-Vista. By default your computer will turn on any vital programs. You aren't deleting the program in that are, and in the code by design any vital programs will re-enable themselves upon reboot. This screen shouldn't affect your computer in the slightest, this includes anti virus programs. They should reboot by design. If it does you have a problem. As for search engines, this is the key reason I have avoided Google. I had no idea Google was still this insecure. This goes back to hacking 101. A hacker will target what's popular to ensure the highest success rate. Browsers like Firefox with noscript should help a lot. I recommend avoiding IE whenever possible.

I never needed to install an anti virus programs. I know computers inside and out. I know how viruses work. Deleting exes is the most damaging thing you can do. However, you should know what exes are legit and which ones are viruses. A virus should NEVER stay on your hard drive. Even if it's dormant. Do not confuse exes that came with your computer upon reformat, and ones that appear later. The ultimate prevention is to reformat every year or two if you do not want the hassle of tracking them down. You can also update your OS through Microsoft's website, beware though it can be glitchy with older computer models. The most vital thing your computer should have is a CD/DVD/Blue Ray Burner. Back up your data, viruses will attach themselves to certain file types. Make sure you have software disks of all your programs. Make sure you have a reinstall list. All the stuff your computer should have on it after your reformat. The worst viruses out there are ones that prevent the Admin from doing anything, or change your OS program code to something else. They can even disable your ability to reformat. The windows CD has two major functions. It can repair the corrupted windows files. If the virus continues to transfer over, a reformat is your only option. Viruses can get deadlier with time as they infest everything you open up. Deal with them immediately. 99.9% of all information you need when dealing with a virus can be found on the internet. But you need to know where to look without harming your computer further. Information is vital when dealing with a virus. My background is in computers. I have worked with hundreds of computers ranging from the Apple IIe to the most modern ones. I have two computer degrees, and have dealt with some of the most severe computer problems ever imagined. Each computer is different, and there is no one solution to all the problems a person may encounter. So this means even my advice isn't perfect, but bear in mind no ones is. I base all my advice on my decades of experience. Please do not look at my advice as the only path you can take.